We’re all pretty familiar with new baby and pregnancy photo shoots by now, whether they’re anything to do with our own procreation or not; arguably given a shot in the arm by Demi Moore’s infamous mag cover, professional photographers are these days well-versed in bump shots, gazing-lovingly-at-newborn poses and sometimes documenting labour itself.

We see these milestone markers all over the place, whether they’re from an international superstar or the neighbour down your road. Except when you’re an international superstar – Beyoncé, say – your pictures will generally rack up millions of ‘likes’.

Following up her pregnancy announcement and maternity shoots, the singer has celebrated the one-month birthday of her twin babies with an image of her holding the new arrivals, a shot that at time of writing is already nudging four million heart-shaped reactions on Instagram.

And in the caption, she confirms the names – Sir Carter and Rumi – after reports earlier this month said she and husband Jay-Z had trademarked the monikers.

She writes simply, “Sir Carter and Rumi 1 month today,” followed by a string of emojis.

Rumi is of Japanese origin, a girl’s name meaning “beauty” and “flow”, and could also be a nod to the male 13th-century Muslim poet from Persia (now Iran). Sir Carter, meanwhile, has obvious nods to status, respect and aristocracy.

In the picture, she dons a veil and is surrounded by flowers, much like her original pregnancy announcement in February, which has so far garnered 11 million likes on Instagram; the subsequent release of further pictures made headlines around the world.

The couple had daughter Blue Ivy in 2012, and Beyoncé later said they had previously suffered a heartbreaking miscarriage. She wrote a song about the experience, while in a highly personal album 4:44, released at the end of June, Jay-Z appears to refer to the pair having experienced several miscarriages in the lyrics of the title track. The song also includes the line “Took for these natural twins to believe in miracles”, leading many to speculate that the couple had fallen pregnant without fertility treatment.

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Amy Swales

Amy Swales is a freelance writer who likes to eat, drink and talk about her dog. She will continue to plunder her own life and the lives of her loved ones for material in the name of comedy, catharsis and getting pictures of her dog on the internet.